IRVING, Texas GTE Corp. today announced the completion of its 17,000-mile, high-speed, high-capacity, fiber backbone, the Global Network Infrastructure (GNI). The GNI is the industrys first fully activated network designed with a ring architecture that increases the networks reliability and decreases the risk of service outages.

Designed to be the foundation for all data and advanced services provided by GTE business units, GTE has invested more than $1.3 billion in the development and engineering of the GNI. To date, the GNI carries all of GTE Internetworkings DSL traffic, as well as the majority of its IP services traffic, nationwide.

We have built one of the biggest and most reliable networks in the industry with the potential to cost-effectively expand capacity to accommodate the most bandwidth-intensive applications, said Paul R. Gudonis, president of GTE Internetworking. With a network fast enough to offer our customers the high performance e-business infrastructure they require during the e-holidays, and beyond, the GNI offers GTE and our customers tremendous benefits in todays competitive marketplace.

iConneXion Taps into the GNI

A good example of the type of bandwidth needs that GTE customers demand is demonstrated by iConneXion. Using the GNI to supply high-end entertainment production and post-production companies with ultra-high bandwidth access, iConneXion has purchased multiple OC-12 (622 megabits per second) circuits on the ATM (asynchronous transfer mode) layer of the GNI. It uses that bandwidth to transport audio and video across the United States, in real-time. This enables its entertainment customers to perform tasks such as motion picture production, special effects development, and sound effects editorial all in a "Virtual Presence Environment" for less money than ever before.
Our business depends on a reliable, high-speed, high-capacity network that can transport bandwidth intensive audio and video applications that allow our customers the creative freedom they demand, said John Mauldin, founder of iConneXion, an I-Connect Initiative LC Company. We are changing the way the entertainment industry works by providing easy connections to an intelligent network, through an ultra-high bandwidth, switched and scaleable system. GTE and the GNI are key to making this a reality.

Planning for the Future

Recognizing that the need for speed and bandwidth is constantly growing, GTE will continue to build out the GNI to include more fiber links at higher speeds. Today, GTE has activated one of the 12 pairs of dark fiber the company purchased in 1997 and deployed it with OC-192 capacity and OC-48 enabled circuits, supporting all GTE points of presence (PoPs) and services nationwide. The company has also used optical electronics and dense wave division multiplexing (DWDM) to create virtually limitless capacity. As bandwidth needs grow, GTE will increase the network capacity and build out the additional fibers. In fact, GTE has added multiple high-speed, circuit layers in those areas that demand more network capacity today.

Internationally, the GNI supports customers domestic and global needs by connecting to GTE Internetworkings European PoPs through undersea fiber. In the future, undersea fiber extensions will provide high-speed connections to Latin America and Pacific Rim countries.

Making the Network More Reliable

GTE has engineered a variety of technologies in the GNI to ensure a high speed, reliable network infrastructure. Among these technologies are OC-192 SONET equipment, four-fiber Bi-directional Line-Switched Ring (BLSR) SONET ring protection, and Automatic Protection Switching (APS). These technologies, combined with the ring-based architecture, increase network reliability and decrease the risk of service outages. In the event of an interruption in the network, the GNI automatically reroutes traffic around the rings and across different fiber strands so it can reach its final destination without interrupting service. All GNI services, including private line, ATM and IP are built on this SONET transport.

About the GNI

GTEs GNI is a high-speed, high-capacity private network that spans more than 100 U.S. metropolitan areas from coast-to-coast. It enables GTE business units to offer a variety of services including ATM and private line. In addition, the GNI works in conjunction with GTEs existing BBN Planet network to support the companys diverse range of IP-based electronic business services such as Internet access, Web hosting, virtual private networks, dial-up access and electronic commerce as well as advanced voice and broadband video.

About GTE Corp.

With 1998 revenues of more than $25 billion, GTE is a leading telecommunications provider with one of the industry's broadest arrays of products and services. In the United States, GTE provides local service in 28 states and wireless service in 18 states, as well as nationwide long-distance, directory, and internetworking services ranging from dial-up Internet access for residential and small-business consumers to Web-based applications for Fortune 500 companies. Outside the United States, the company serves customers on five continents. Additional information about GTE can be obtained at www.gte.com.

GTEs community and philanthropic programs target excellence in education, particularly math, science, technology and literacy. GTE also supports job training, delivery of health and human services, and the arts. The companys newest program is GTE Reads, a public charity designed to create public awareness, increase fundraising and support organizations dedicated to improving Americas literacy levels. GTE customers can contribute to GTE Reads by checking off a box on their bill. Others can contribute through GTE Superpages.com (www.superpages.com).